Stargate: Dark Frontier 2x01 Deadly Sin
by Lone-ranger1
Summary: Season 2 Premiere, Atlantis is securely back in our heroes' hands, but with two missing ZPMs, they're going to strike back if they want any hope of surviving. Kevin Marks is going to have to lead the charge against the Olim... but surprises await everyone
1. Chapter 1

**Stargate: Dark Frontier**

**Season 2**

**Episode 1 – Deadly Sin**

* * *

_303 days in Hoag's Object_

_1 day since Olim Invasion_

* * *

_"My name is John Sheppard, I used to be a Lieutenant Colonel in the United States Air Force. Five years ago I got drafted into an expedition to another galaxy. I made friends, I made enemies, I fought a heartless enemy known as the Wraith for those first four years... until I made a mistake._

___I let my best friend talk me into trying to activate a weapon even the Ancients couldn't control, the Asurans, and now the Pegasus Galaxy is nothing but ash. Hundreds... thousands... millions of people dead. Many of my friends died too including… well… he's not __really__ dead… but he might as well be._

_  
__We saved seven thousand. We ran. We couldn't go home, we couldn't stay, so we ran further than anyone could catch us. I broke, my best friend was the one to break me. But I survived, and out here on this dark frontier, we're trying to start a new life. But there are some things you can't run from, and it's all slowly catching up to us._

___This… is the story of Hoag's Object."_

* * *

**A/N: **Welcome Back to _Stargate: Dark Frontier_. If you're reading this and don't know what Dark Frontier is, you may want to follow the link below to the wiki page to catch up :D Included in the Wiki are summaries of the prequel to Dark Frontier, **Universal Sin**, as well as summaries of all Dark Frontier Episodes posted as of now. (Episode 1-20)

http(COLON)//sg-darkfrontier(DOT)wikia(DOT)com/wiki/Stargate(COLON)_Dark_Frontier_Wiki

Also there is all the artwork and race and tech information that has been made available. It's the easiest most efficient way to get caught up, though if you're in for the long haul, you've got about half a million words of catch up in Universal Sin and Dark Frontier combined :D

To get updated on releases as they come out, remember to subscribe to the C2 archive here

www(DOT)fanfiction(DOT)net/community/Stargate_Atlantis_Universal_Sin_Dark_Frontier/73040/

Or add me to your Author Alerts if you want to keep apprised of my other writing as well. I highly recommend subscribing to the C2 archive anyway as there will likely be guest episodes written by other authors, with one already having been written by **TheIceMenace** who's been a great friend and beta :D

Dark Frontier Season 2 will follow a somewhat standard format of around 20+ episodes, with approximately 5 chapters per episode depending on length. Each episode will be a separate story from now on so story alerts will only work for a single episode. C2 Archive is your best bet to get all updates :)

As always, reviews of any sort are appreciated and typically replied to.

Massive props and thanks to the following

**TheIceMenace**: While our styles may differ, she's always been a great friend and strong sanity compass. DF would not be what it is without her assistance :D Thanks is not a strong enough word **IceMenace!** Make sure to check out her stuff if you enjoy fluffy friendly stuff, as well as some irreverent humor!

She's currently working on a Shep!whump fic entitled... "Whump"

**Neela**: **Neela'**s been a strong support for me since day one, and I have to admit, we typically think on the same wavelength when it comes to writing. Her beta services and brainstorming have been invaluable, even if she is in Uni and takes awhile :P Make sure to check out **"Some Corner Of a Foreign Field"** for a great telling of an Apoca!Fic.

**Choo1701: Choo1701**'s kinda like a mix of George Lucas and Michael Bay. He helps me keep it epic and a tightly woven story :D That and he's a complete geek but we still wub him :P He's also quite the aspiring artist as he's currently working on creating a Stargate inspired Web Comic titled **"Hallowed Turf"**, that takes place in a Stargate Universe where the Ori won the battle, but not the war.

Humanity is finally ready to touch the stars again, but as Aaron Frost, a reporter on the United Nations Research Vessel Cook is about to find out, there are those who take down gods, and there are those who face the consequences.

**Alx Shipyards: **Last but not least, **Alx! **Alx has also been here since day one, and been a great sounding board for a few concepts brought up in DF. Even more, Alx has been utterly magnificent in creating artwork for the series which can be viewed at the gateworld thread, as well as on the Wiki Page. Many many thanks should go to him, and make sure to wish him luck on his potential career in 3D animation and modeling!

Finally, thank you to all my fans. It's very humbling that you would take the time to read what I write, and I strive to give you the best back…

So without further adieu… Those needing a quick pick me up, we last left our heroes on Atlantis, with the Olim having stolen 2 ZPMs and leaving the city in shambles. We pick up the story with a bit of a twist. Whuahaha!

WARNING. THIS EPISODE CONTAINS STRONG SUBJECT MATTER, VIOLENCE, AND COURSE LANGUAGE, READER DISCRETION IS ADVISED.

* * *

"Ten seconds to normal space."

Kevin remained silent; everyone was silent. The cost had been so high, but the price of inaction would have been higher. He leaned forward on his command chair, using his hands to squeeze the bridge of his nose. In part it was frustration, but another part was sorrow. The crew had sworn allegiance to him no matter what, even though his latest order wasn't all that popular.

Atlantis would have a new meaning, and not necessarily a better one.

The _Daedalus_ ripped through the barrier between normal space and hyperspace seamlessly, and immediately began to take hits on the deflector shields. Kevin raised his head at the alarms sounding and saw his crew jump into action. "Report!"

Ry took a quick scan, and called it out as the information scrolled across his screen. "Debris field! Scanners can't make it out!"

Kevin got to his feet and watched on the viewscreen. He'd seen this sort of debris field before, when he'd destroyed a Shade Tinman. "Wide system scan! Find out what's going on out there!" He already knew it, all he wanted was confirmation. _Daedalus_ was nudging aside the massive debris field, pushing through and clearing the visual of the planet and moon ahead.

Jalen was silent throughout it all; he'd been silent since leaving the Olim planet. Ry again spoke. "I think it's Shade remains. It matches what we've got from the Tinman we destroyed. Planet's coming into view."

Kevin felt his heart rate increase; the planet was there… barely. The largely water based moon had been frozen over, one of the Giant Shade creatures hovering over it with its long heatsink deployed. "_Jesus Christ…." _It wouldn't be long for the creature to shatter the planet, and begin the process of harvesting it. It didn't make sense to Kevin; as far as he knew the Shade didn't come out this far. But here they were and…

and Atlantis was nowhere to be seen. "_Evasive!_ How long for hyperdrive?!"

The crew were speechless, the thoughts going through everyone's mind were the same. Atlantis was a huge power source, especially given that they'd just recovered their ZPMs. Something had drawn the Shade here and now, Saudade was little more than a frozen rock ready to be shattered into manageable chunks.

Kevin ended up having to jump back into his command seat and take manual control of the ship. He quickly spun the craft around hoping to use the gas giant as a barrier between them, but the viewscreen filled with more debris, except this wasn't all inert. Dozens… hundreds of Shade Gremlins floated about picking at their fallen brethren. Many had noticed _Daedalus _and now moved forward.

Kevin didn't hesitate and now spat fire orders. "Railguns to auto-point defense! Bring forward missile tubes online! Load a Mark 8 into the rear tubes! Move, move, move!"

Snapped back to reality, the crew leapt into action. Atlantis was nowhere to be seen, but _Daedalus _wasn't going to go down without one _hell_ of a fight.

------------** 22 hours earlier** ----------

It had been awhile since Kevin piloted _Daedalus_, but the Travelers who made up his crew weren't comfortable yet actually _landing_ the ship so he had to retake his old role. "Alright, so you just ease it in, you see? If you land too hard, you might actually damage the struts, too soft and you'll burn the landing pad."

Mila tapped the controls on the helm as Kevin crouched next to her. A few of the Travelers nearby were chuckling as Kevin explained to Mila how to fly and land the _Daedalus_. His second in command, a Traveler named Jalen who had undergone the USAF training under John a few months prior, muttered quietly. "_And he says he's a professional…"_

Kevin turned to look at Jalen, gave him a sharp stare, but then a slight smirk. "I'm workin' on it."

The other four Travelers, including Mila, chuckled at the way Kevin seemed to be lightening up. It had been quite awhile now that they'd been working with him, and slowly but surely he was becoming more than just a friend.

As the ship spun around, Mila noticed something on the viewscreen. "What the…?"

Kevin turned to look as he finally set the ship down. "What is it?"

Mila pointed to the screen. "I didn't know Katty was going to be here."

As Kevin looked, he spotted what Mila was pointing at. On the docking pad next to them, the_ Sobek_, the ship Katana was Captain of, sat on Atlantis. Kevin mused to himself as he looked to his crew who prepared for resupply. "That's odd."

* * *

Nevas had been waiting for him right as he stepped off the ship. The bandage around his head was the first clear sign that something was wrong. Even more, the fact that he wouldn't say anything was another sign.

But none of that said anything to the fact that something horrible had happened more than the smell. Kevin had lost a pet to a car accident when he was a child, and he always remembered the smell of _that_ terrible incident.

This smelled far stronger, and besides, he knew copper wasn't a big enough part of the alloy Atlantis used to be detectable by smell.

The hallways of the city were deserted, almost like a city that had been abandoned. Kevin remained quiet as Nevas walked him up to the conference room.

Something bad had happened, and with the _Sobek_ here, he started to worry.

* * *

"I'll get right to the point. We didn't tell you over the communication frequencies because we don't want to create a panic." Kevin remained quiet, simply listening to Sam as she explained what had happened on Atlantis while he was away. "The Olim invaded us approximately 13 hours ago. We managed to repel their attack but we've taken moderate casualties."

Sitting with John, Sam, Daniel, as well as Nevas and the two Traveler Captains from the ships in orbit, Kevin could feel the weight in his gullet increase. "How many?"

Sam had been expecting Kevin to worry more about the lives lost rather than the state of the city itself. She fully understood that many of the people who'd come with them had found places or people to latch onto to try and remain sane, have some normalcy in their lives. Kevin had made the _Daedalus_ his home and the Travelers his family… nothing intrinsically wrong with that. "At last count, thirty two dead, mostly Traveler security but a few Settlers were killed as well. Over a hundred wounded. Carson and his staff are doing what they can, but we're seriously hurting."

When John spoke up, Kevin could sense the rage from his seat five feet away. "No Olim survivors left 'cept for Aleron. We beat 'em back, but there's a problem."

Both Traveler Captains, Rutagen and another called Phelan, looked to Kevin for their cue. If anyone in the room needed more proof that they trusted him, that was it. Kevin looked to them both then nodded. "The _Sobek?"_

Sam winced, already knowing what might be on Kevin's mind. "Partially. We don't know how they did it and we have a technical team recovering the sensor logs from the _Sobek_. But the bigger concern is Atlantis itself. The Olim stole two of our ZPMs. Alicia says at least two Olim got away."

Torn, Kevin took a few deep breaths to calm down. Katana was a Captain, she'd _been_ a Captain for awhile now. She _had_ to be okay. "I'm guessing they left through the Stargate, that's why they only took two?"

Daniel nodded and pointed to the screen behind him that showed a galactic map. "Our records indicate they used a portable DHD to gate to this world." He pointed it out on the screen. "Before you ask, we've tried dialing. No dice. There's some kind of defensive shield on the gate. Probably something like an iris."

Sam pumped her fist a few times; she looked exhausted and both she and John kept giving each other looks. Kevin couldn't help but notice the two seemed almost avoiding each other in the same room. It was odd compared to the closeness he'd seen on his last trip here. "So you want us to fly there? Get our ZPM's back?"

John and Sam again looked to each other. This time they remained silent as Daniel finished explaining. "Yes… as well as a possible hostage rescue. Besides the crew of the _Sobek_, we're missing eight Traveler technicians as well as Larrin. We think they've been abducted."

Kevin sat up straight in his chair. "_Sobek_ has almost a hundred and fifty crewmen… What happened to them?"

Sam spoke, her voice quite civil despite the obvious anger in her veins. "We don't know Kevin, that's why we're going with you. If it's at all possible, we're going to get our people back."

Just hearing Sam say 'our people' gave Kevin hope, but only a meager one.

* * *

Gripping the edge of the bed where a pair of metal handle poles kept patients from rolling out of bed, Alicia bit down hard on the piece of leather Reyna had put in her mouth before pulling the knife out. It hurt even worse than _getting_ stabbed, and Alicia quietly and selfishly wished that they'd given her some of the precious narcotic painkillers they were saving for the more severely wounded.

Reyna quickly inserted a Traveler device that warmed up quickly and accelerated the clotting process. Within seconds the blood vessels that had been cut open sealed, and the bloody mess of her pants was given a chance to dry. Alicia finally spat out the piece of leather and panted. "Oh, I'm gonna _kill_ that bitch."

Reyna remained quiet, simply working as fast and efficiently as she could. Around them, more wounded were being treated for everything from lacerations, shrapnel, to critical limb damage. The Olim had either been bad shots or aimed for the limbs, likely seeking to cripple and debilitate their opponents.

All Reyna knew was that she couldn't feel anything anymore, her emotions and feelings one way or another had gone dull and all that mattered now was doing her job. Patch up the wounded, and pray that no one else died under her care.

* * *

Carson had given him an injection of that same narcotic painkiller to dull the savage wound on his face, but it was pointless. The pain was so extreme that Aleron wanted to just lapse into unconsciousness. But they needed him… still needed what he knew.

It was unfair to the extreme. He'd saved the lives of their ambassadors, earned the trust of their greatest warrior and healer, and he was still being treated like an outcast. Not that Aleron was really starting to expect more any time soon. _'What would Aulus say now, seeing his son maimed for these… these…?'_

Carter and Sheppard had tried to get to know him, but they seemed too soft for the battle ahead. Their plan had worked but they'd not seen the face of their opponent, they didn't feel the blood rush of knowing failure would be the cost of your opponent's smiling face being the last thing you would ever see.

And now they wanted more. And as much as Aleron wanted to tell them to freeze in the wasteland, memories of someone warm and kind, someone who'd taught him to respect all others no matter what, came to him.

Carter, Sheppard, Daniel and one other stood by his bed now, awaiting his answer. Carson stood next to him tending to his wounds. "What planet?"

Daniel shrugged his shoulders. The look of anguish on all the faces helped Aleron to see that they indeed felt sympathy for his situation, even if this newfound trust was a little late. "We don't know the name. It's the planet nearest the outer edge of the galaxy that Aulus told me is part of your colonies."

To Aleron's surprise, Carter reached down and took his hand. "Take your time… don't stress." He could feel the edge of tears in her, but her face and outwardly emotions screamed control, they screamed white hot blinding controlled _rage_. Aleron recalled what Aulus had said of Atlantis's wrath, and how the Olim would be the center target of it should something like this happen. "Are you as worthy as Carson?"

A little surprised by the words, the others looked to each other and finally Daniel replied. "Pardon?"

Delirious from the pain and drugs, Aleron shifted to sit up. It was so disorienting to see and not have good depth perception, almost as if it were just a picture on a screen. "I threatened Carson with worse than death and he stuck by his convictions. Tell me that you're as honorable as he and I'll tell you." Aleron had no clue what the capabilities of these Atlanteans were in space combat. His own people had mastered magnetic field technology, but simply didn't have the infrastructure to mass produce weapons. That didn't mean their core planets were undefended, and he had the idea that even the Atlanteans would be surprised by their potential opposition.

It took a few seconds of looking to each other again, and this time Sheppard was the one to nod and give the reply. "We are. What do you want?"

A simple request. "Leave my people alone. Leave Aquilina and the rest of my people out of this. Do what you will with the Menalus and his men. They no longer _exist_ in my universe. That is my price."

Instantly, Carter held her hand out in an open gesture, her fingers separated as she'd learned the Olim greeted each other. Daniel had explained it quite simply, it was meant to show the bond the Olim had, each finger representing the intertwining of their diverse culture and society. "You have my word."

Seeing that she was serious, and sensing no deception on their part, Aleron raised his hand, still covered in his own blood and took Carter's. She squeezed him hard, his hand cold from the blood loss of earlier. Aleron bowed his head, swallowed his pain and spoke gently. "The planet you speak of is an ancient burial ground and scientific research planet. It is said a temple of the ancestors still remains but I have no knowledge of it. From what I've learned from Doctor Jackson, it is possible this is a construct of the Ancients and Menalus seeks to power it with your stolen power devices.

"The planet is defended by a series of at least a dozen orbital magnetic cannons. Each cannon is basically an unmanned starship with essentials removed and controlled from the ground. The hull has been filled with energy storage devices and a high caliber Trinium cannon. Each has the strength to level a city like this, but apart from testing, they've never been used against any enemy as the Shade do not travel so far out into the ring of the galaxy.

"Apart from that, there is a military barracks permanently stationed there. You can expect to find at least a hundred Alcaeus armor wielders, apart from a legion of other troops in training. A ground attack would be suicide."

Sam nodded, and used both hands to squeeze Aleron's. "Thank you."

Seeing that they were still adamant on going, Aleron scoffed softly. "I hope you are ready for more death, because that is what you walk into."

Sensing anger, but not exactly towards him, Aleron looked as Sheppard turned to him and seemed to growl like a wild animal. "You told us we'd never seen an Alcaeus enraged. Well, you've never seen _us_ enraged." He left it at that, and now moved off.

Finally succumbing to his wounds and beginning to lose consciousness again, Aleron looked to Carson and mused. "Will they keep their promise?"

Carson bowed his head, and gave Aleron a squeeze of his shoulder. "I don't know."

* * *

"Oh _God…_ don't tell me they got to you too?"

Chuck shook his head and groaned in pain. "I tripped."

Laura shook her head and had to laugh even though her eyes were moist. "You _tripped?"_

Nodding now, Chuck swung his legs out of the bed and tried to keep his quickly made splint from moving his obviously broken arm too much. "Was heading up to the control room to meet up with Nevas, heard the first few shots, and uhh… fell down the stairs."

It was ridiculous, in the midst of all the intense fighting and stories of skin of their teeth close survivors, Chuck had managed to fall down a flight of stairs. He looked almost comically deflated with a bandage around his head holding an icepack, his arm in sling and splint, and back arched in pain. Laura put a hand on his shoulder and winced seeing that even _that_ hurt him. "Aw Chucky…"

* * *

"You all know what's happened and you all know the risks. We came here less than a year ago and in that time, I haven't done you all the proper service."

John leaned on the wall to the side in the shadows. Sam was addressing the surviving Traveler security force along with the rest of the Earthborn. John stewed silently. He and Sam had gone to see Radek and were horrified by the hole in his gut despite the stasis pod. John was finding it harder and harder to separate 'The Olim' from 'Menalus' in his head despite Sam's promise to Aleron.

How many Olim agreed with Menalus and approved of this failed invasion? How many disagreed? How many didn't even know? This was Afghanistan all over again. You never knew who your enemy was until they were shooting at you, or in his case, your chopper.

Sam continued her less than rousing speech to the gathered men and women in the Gate Room. "At last count, we've lost thirty seven lives today and almost a hundred others have been changed forever. _All_ our lives have been changed and not for the better.

"I'm not one to lie; this is going to be dangerous, possibly even more so than what we just went through. I intend to show these Olim exactly who they've hurt, exactly who they've now declared an enemy. I intend to go right to their stronghold, break it open, and get our people back.

I want to send a message to every last Olim: I'm coming for them and there isn't anything out there that can stop me. I want volunteers. If we have to have boots hit the ground, I want you to understand that this is _not_ a skirmish, this is _not_ a simple engagement. This is_ war! _And in war, we _kill_ our enemy or they'll kill us_."_

No one in the Gate Room had ever heard Sam so bloodthirsty and aggressive. Even so, she remained calm and in control. John still stood behind her out of sight, equally angry but at the same time, worried for her. His rage ran deep as well but something told him to be a control point, something to temper the rage of those beneath him and direct it at those responsible.

Less than an hour to get ready, and to launch their counteroffensive.

* * *

"Sam…"

Sam looked up from her desk where she prepared everything she'd need: her TacVest, the computer she'd need to verify the ZPMs were in working order, and even a modified Traveler Particle Magnum she'd been toying around with with Mila.. "What do you want, John?"

John didn't exactly know how to phrase what he wanted to say. Something along the lines of supporting her and wanting the same support back, but after last night it seemed... _strange. _He'd never worked and fought alongside a woman he'd slept with. He struggled to say it, but in the end he changed his subject before it began. "…Rafaela said she'll go. That makes most Earthborn, along with a double squad of Travelers."

Sam nodded and slipped her TacVest on. She zipped it up and holstered her particle magnum. "I want to split up if we have to go to ground. Two teams, I want you to lead the second team." It hurt to give the orders, but the pain, the _need_ to just pull John close for even a moment to get the reassurance his being around gave her… she couldn't do it, not now, not moments before they charged headfirst into battle.

John for that matter simply nodded. "I've got Dan, Dusty and Rafaela. Figure they've worked together before…" He didn't say the other reason, and he nodded to her explaining. "That gives you Ronon, Nevas and Laura."

Sam for that matter understood immediately. John was giving her the best to ensure her safety. Ronon was the best warrior, Laura loved things going boom, and Nevas was the top of the Dan's marine training class, yet he still maintained his nonchalant personality. She didn't know whether to be insulted or honored, so Sam simply nodded and motioned out the door of her office. "Good. Let's go."

* * *

Nobody had said anything. Kevin simply told his crew what the score was, and they'd all silently agreed. Any order he gave…and it would be done.

Even more, the upgraded armrest console Mila had made for him gave him override access on the ship's maneuvering and weapons. It was the closest he could come to complete control over the ship. The only thing left was a mental interface, but the Travelers hadn't quite worked that out just yet.

Only a few hours… only a few hours and they'd be at the Olim world ready to strike back.


	2. Chapter 2

Pointing down to the planet on the table screen, Sam emphasized her point. "If we have to have to have people on the ground, then this is the only way we'll stand a chance."

Kevin wasn't sure he liked this plan, but at this point it was the only thing that made sense. "I've got plenty of nukes left, but it'll be tricky to calculate how far we can detonate it so there's no real blast damage. We also don't know if their circuits are shielded against EMP."

John scoffed softly. With Sam and Marks both here, he was quite liberal with his speech. "Tell that to the bastards we pancaked to the walls in Atlantis."

To John's surprise, Sam agreed. "If their armor isn't shielded then what are the chances their regular hardware is? At the very least, we'll be on even footing with their armor disabled."

The small conference room served well for this purpose, and Kevin looked out into the void of subspace. He hadn't fought a battle like this since Pegasus, and he didn't really count the skirmish with the Shade Tinmen as a battle. People were likely going to die today, more than had already been lost on Atlantis if things went south. He could only hope that the ostensibly captured Travelers were okay… Kevin had been coming to realize that just like Katana, the ideologies and feelings that came with living in space made him one of them. His family.

* * *

Ronon geared up just like all the others. He had had a quick talk with John and he'd decided. He was the last true warrior here. Maybe Dan came close, but every one of these people had something worth living for, not something worth dying for.

Different… that's what he was now. Ronon had almost fallen into the same trap, falling into apotheosis of life. Ronon knew different. Love didn't last; the human being was the most masochistic creature there was. Why else would he hurt so damn much for a woman who just wanted a physical bond and nothing more?

Dusty sat across from Ronon in the armory with Dan and Rafaela next to her. Rafaela was alone in the mix of people, the dozen or so Travelers who'd volunteered, including Nevas, as well as the others who tended their own wounded psyches.

Dan put his hand on Rafaela's shoulder and reassured her, giving her last minute pointers on taking cover and keeping your body out of sight, picking what types of cover to use, as well as his promise to watch her back. She was coming because they might need technical expertise. If either team ran into the ZPMs, it was possible they were hooked up to some Olim technology and would need to be retrieved without damage. That didn't make Rafaela any less frightened though.

Nevas stood off to the side with a few other Travelers, giving pointers on his fight with the Olim only a few hours past. They were all tired, but with the critical time lapse between invasion and the time the _Sobek_ was taken, not a second could be wasted.

* * *

"Approaching the system. Bringing all systems to full readiness."

Kevin took a deep breath. If Aleron was right, it wouldn't be long 'till he met opposition. "Drop us out of hyperspace. Bring shields and all weapons online." It had been awhile since using the Asgard Cannons or beams; it suddenly felt a little like overkill. Then again, he didn't want to risk any Traveler ships since somehow the Olim had taken the _Sobek. _ "Bring a tactical view of the system onscreen."

His order was quickly acknowledged, and the system appeared on the screen. Jalen pointed out the binary stars. "Those two stars are _very_ close together. I'm surprised a planet that can support life even exists here."

Figuring the universe was huge, and even though he was in a place that few had ever tread, things had to exist that would make Kevin fear for the fate of existence itself, but right now all he cared about was getting their people back. "Bring us in towards the fourth planet. That's the one Aleron said would be habitable." He looked at the map and saw that the planet had a pair of moons. Perfect cover. "Bring us in behind that big moon. Make sure to scan it first. They might have colonized it. I don't want to want into an ambush."

An acknowledgement, but Kevin was more preoccupied with how to handle this situation. Back in the Milky Way, in Pegasus, or even in Star Trek, they'd always hail first and see if a peaceful solution could be reached. He'd already sided with Sheppard and Carter that a peaceful solution was unlikely, but to not go overboard. It was Menalus and his troops who were the enemy, not the Olim themselves.

That presented a problem, and soon Kevin could see what it was. Jalen called out from his position beside him. "I'm picking up hyperspace signals. Lots of them… all outbound. Looks like they're evacuating the planet."

Kevin mused to himself as he switched the view on the screen to the long range sensors to get an accurate reading. "Smart… must know we're here."

Jalen shook his head. "No… if they did then they knew before we got here. I'm picking up a lot of residual hyperspace energy. It's like they're abandoning the planet for good."

Suddenly worried, because they still hadn't been able to crack hyperspace tracking technology, Kevin keyed in military thrust to the engines to get there faster. "I want accurate sensor data. Make sure all our guns are aligned and zeroed in."

The crew had gotten used to Kevin's style of command and the orders were quickly followed. The _Daedalus_ snuck up on the planet rather conspicuously, using the moon as ample cover from the now detected orbital platforms.

Not too much to Kevin's surprise, a message came in from the planet. "Hmmm… guess they're curious who we are." He tapped the communications panel and waited as the technicians worked on getting the signals to match. It only took a few moments for the computer core to translate the digital coding, but soon a face resolved itself on the screen.

It was an older man, a little older than Caldwell, Kevin would guess; he looked a little less intimidating though with his simple clothing and full hair. "This is Proconsul Denarius Telarus of the Olim house of Telarus. Identify yourself."

Kevin didn't exactly know what to say. He hadn't identified his ship in over a year and as he thought about it, he didn't really know who or what he was representing. He could say _USS Daedalus_, but the craft truly wasn't an United States ship anymore. Neither could he say Traveler since even though the crew was, the ship truthfully wasn't. In the end he decided to stick to the principle of the matter, and he stood as he spoke. "I don't identify myself to murderers and thieves. All you need to know is, I'm from Atlantis, and I'm here for what is ours."

No one on the bridge was able to contain their shock, and with Kevin standing tall and proud, they too felt a sudden sense of pride, something the Travelers hadn't felt in ages.

Denarius scoffed on the screen. "That's a delicate looking ship there, Monkey. Come and play and I may toss you a fruit."

Unwilling to be goaded, Kevin simply smirked and retorted. "The ship you hijacked, the _Sobek._ That is a craft that was built over five hundred years ago and has held together despite war, _and_ age. What you see before you is nothing like it. I was there when this ship was built 5 years ago, and I've seen her through conflicts you can't even imagine. _This_ is your only warning. Return our people, and any technology you've stolen and we'll leave without a fight. Resist…and I'll burn every military asset you have into vapor."

Again, Denarius chuckled. "You speak boldly, but even your primitive sensors must detect the orbital stations around this planet. Each one could level continents. What chance do you think you have against the Children of the Divine?"

Seeing that reason wasn't going to be of any assistance, Kevin sighed. "Very well. Jalen, target the nearest orbital platform with particle cannons."

The ship moved out from behind the moon and the orbital platforms began to turn and aim. At this range it would take at least fifteen seconds for each projectile to reach Daedalus… more than enough time to drift out of its path. Denarius watched intently and soon Jalen said. "Target locked. No lifesigns detected."

A warning, a sign to show just who he was messing with. Kevin remained standing and simply said. "Good. Fire."

A quartet of particle cannon shots fired, each one travelling at similar speeds as the slugs fired by the orbital platforms. _Daedalus_ easily moved out of the path of the incoming Trinium slugs. Kevin even oddly mused to himself that he should beam them onto the ship for salvage. Trinium wasn't easy to find. Maybe once all this was over he could track them down.

The orbital platform, though, had no such luck, and with more than a small sense of satisfaction, the particle cannons tore deep gouges into the unshielded craft. It burned for several seconds, exhausting the fuels and oxygen inside the platform, before finally breaking apart under its own torsion.

On the screen, Denarius was visibly bothered, but he remained stoic and snarled back. "Insignificant. Our own weapons do much greater damage."

Feeling more than a little angry and righteous at the same time, Kevin decided to see if it was possible to make an Olim wet their pants. "Oh, really? Well then… Jalen, target the next closest platform with forward Asgard Plasma Cannons. Only one shot...put it dead center and make sure you won't hit the planet."

Denarius was a little confused over the 'don't hit the planet' remark, but Jalen knew what Kevin meant, and looking around could see the others were quite a bit pleased as well. "Target locked."

With the _Daedalus_ spinning around, Kevin again gave the order. "Fire."

From the forward nose section of the _Daedalus_, one of the modified Asgard Plasma Cannons spat out a single pulse. The blue pulse soared ahead, any particulate matter simply vaporizing as the highly compressed plasma shot arced over the horizon of the planet. In the distance, more of the Olim ship-buildings entered hyperspace, some lingering to see what happened.

It wasn't hard to guess what would happen for anyone on the _Daedalus_. The Asgard cannon easily boiled away any armor and hull, almost unaffected, as it punched a hole clean through the orbital platform, leaving it listing and still burning as the shot flew off into the void. The platform had been cleanly penetrated, and now steam and molten metal flew and hardened in the cold of orbit.

Denarius was speechless. He'd never seen such weapons before. Seeing that he'd made his point, Kevin now decided to emphasize the balance of power. "Oh, you liked that? Jalen, spin us so our beam cannons are pointing at the planet. Fire a wide arc over an ocean, don't target any inhabited areas."

It was overkill, it was unnecessary, but Jalen was just as angry. "Got it."

A few moments passed as the _Daedalus_ dodged more incoming projectiles from the other orbital platforms. As they were closer, it had less time to plot the course, but it didn't matter much.

The Asgard Beam arced out of the top of the _Daedalus_, burning across a hundred kilometers of pristine ocean, instantly boiling to the crust and causing a tidal shift of water and a cloud of steam.

Now Denarius was stunned to the core. "You've… stolen weapons from the progenitors themselves! And you use them to _terrorize_ us!?"

Kevin smirked and deadpanned. "Actually that's from one of their greatest allies, the Asgard, whom I might say left everything they had to us because we worked so well with them. We do have Ancient weapons though. Would you like to see them?" It was a bluff, but at this point it didn't matter. Worse came to worst, they could send one of the Jumpers just to show off.

It was for naught though, as the _Daedalus_ finally entered orbit of the planet and Denarius's face left the screen. Jalen muttered, "Looks like he's about to wet himself, good."

Something didn't feel right to Kevin though, and he turned to his sensor and navigation officer, a Traveler named Urias, whom he colloquially called '_Ry'._ "Ry, gimme a scan of the planet, let's see if we can find our people and the Potentia." Catching himself, Kevin oddly mused that he'd started to use Traveler versions of words just so he was understood quickly.

The crew worked quickly, and Jalen gave a small curse as he smacked his console. "_Wraith shit, _there's some kind of shield down there! It reads as Ancestral but… _different."_ He keyed in the cameras and an image of the ground appeared. The shield was covering a large mass of land. Beside it were a few buildings, as well as a landing pad that weren't covered by the shield.

Kevin moved over and examined it himself. Seeing how he couldn't figure it out, he called up Sam to get to the bottom of it. She may have been preparing for the battle on the ground, but her expertise would come in handy.

* * *

The final orbital platform was burned to dust, the Asgard Cannons still working beautifully. Sam had come up to assist with the sensor scan and had finally gotten a good reading. "Looks similar to the kind of shielding Atlantis has, but… it's not registering with any known shield types we've encountered."

Kevin shrugged and looked back to the screen. "Well, how many is that really? Asgard, Goa'uld, and Ancient. Even the Traveler shields are based on Ancient technology."

Sam nodded and continued studying the scans. "The Goa'uld's too… That shield is giving off _a lot _of interference. We won't be able to beam anything within a kilometer of it, but I think I've found the ZPMs."

Jalen had already guessed it. "They're using the Potentia to power that shield, aren't they?"

Blowing a sigh, Sam cursed under her breath. "Most likely. Which means any damage we do is just going to drain them, and since it's an Ancient-type shield, it could potentially drain both ZPMs before we got through with our weapons."

That only left one option, and Kevin didn't exactly like it. "We haven't found any of our people, but that shield is blocking scans of the interior of that facility. It's possible we might be able to get a Jumper through that shield with the right frequency… but it's a long shot…" He turned to Sam. "…Right?"

Sam confirmed it with a nod. She sighed softly and then tapped the communications panel. "Carter to Sheppard. Are you listening in?"

It was standard operating procedure for the team leaders to keep apprised of what was going on, and Sheppard replied instantly. "_Got it. Cadman can fly Jumper two. Any luck finding the hostages?"_

Checking the scans again, Sam shrugged and looked up at Kevin. "How many did you say there were?"

Kevin felt a little offended that Sam didn't know how many people were on the ships operating from Atlantis, but he kept his mouth shut. "A hundred and forty-seven."

Turning back to the scan, Sam pointed at one specific building. "There. There's a huge mass of people in that building outside the shield. I doubt the Olim would congregate like that. They're probably being held prisoner."

Taking a look at the whole map, Kevin decided that he'd take the initiative. "Alright, once you guys are ready to head down, I'll fire the nuke and set off the EMP. Let's hope it works." He looked back at the screen as Sam left to join her team. The battle was only beginning, and with most of the ships the Olim had now fleeing, it was down to those Olim who would stand against Atlantis.

* * *

"What's the plan?"

Ronon had said it with a brusque voice, obviously challenging Sam's credibility as a team leader. Sam noticed immediately and laid down the law. "We're assuming there's an Ancient outpost on the ground. Scans indicate we can likely pass through their shields with the Jumper. Before that though, _Daedalus_ will fire a modified nuclear weapon into the atmosphere of the planet, blanketing the area with EMP. Any Alcaeus armor users will likely experience the same effect as on Atlantis." She could see that Ronon was keeping up, so looking at the rest of the squads with them, she continued. "This means we'll be on a level playing ground. While my squad goes in to get our ZPMs back, John…" Sam hesitated a second and then spoke more confidently. "_Colonel_ Sheppard will be leading the majority of you in a hostage rescue. I want you to hit them _fast_ and hit them _hard_. These are the same people who just invaded Atlantis and I want them to know what it's like."

In the hanger bay where the Jumpers were being prepped, every volunteer was going through their own form of pre-mission jitters. Nevas cracked his neck and rolled his shoulders. "Alright, you heard the lady. Get to your assigned teams and for God's sake, watch for friendly fire." He ran a hand through his long hair. "One of you scrubbers burned my hair on 'lantis and I'd rather not experience that again. So remember your training and we'll get outta this okay."

The others all nodded. The humor was a slight relief, but it was obvious no one was going to laugh. John simply gave Sam one strong look that she reciprocated and they moved apart, each to their Jumpers.

Rafaela stuck close to Dan and Dusty as they checked and rechecked their weapons. She held a non-extended Particle Rifle in one arm with the sling around her shoulder. She groaned loudly as she sat on the bench in the rear of the Jumper with both her teammates on each side. "You know… Mom told me engineering and physics would be a great career: get to do important work, have time for all the things I wanted to do, and be on the cutting edge."

Dusty put a hand on Rafaela's shoulder. If anything spoke to Rafaela not being a soldier, the way she tried and failed to control her breathing said it. "Deep breaths, Ella, we'll cover ya."

Silent, Dan simply flicked his Particle Rifle open and replaced the clip with a new one. The simple gesture reassured Rafaela. She had a streetwise Marine and a spaztastic Air Force lieutenant protecting her apart from the six other Travelers, as well as Sheppard. This was the safest she could possible be.

In the other Jumper, Sam looked to the people with her. Laura was flying and it was obvious she was nervous, and given the bandolier of C4 charges she wore "Rambo" style, Sam couldn't help but feel just a _little _worried. She found herself missing her old team. Cam would definitely say something about his grandma, Vala would likely be badmouthing the Olim, and Teal'c… Teal'c would be right here beside her, ready to support and fight alongside her to the death.

She thought about how everything had changed, and now she had a new team. John… a man she was really coming to… well… it hadn't reached that level yet, but Sam trusted him beyond just about anyone, maybe even as much as Jack. Daniel had all but given up his action ways, preferring to remain in the simplicity of studying Ancient culture, as well as the other peoples with them. He'd found someone in Teyla who he could trust and Sam couldn't help but feel happy for him.

That came to Teyla, a stabilizing force if Sam ever knew one. The Refugees would have rioted a dozen times over if not for her and Daniel's calm words. Sam had never really known Teyla in Pegasus, something she felt bad over.

Negligence didn't forgive, and looking at how Ronon growled softly as they descended into the atmosphere, Sam realized that she'd let herself become soft. She was a soldier whose duty was to protect Atlantis, and right now, only by the skin of her teeth, was the city still in their hands.

Nothing was easy anymore, not that it was before but now, now everything, every decision was just too hard. A bit of her soul was lost every time and before she knew it, time flew by.

But as much as Sam wanted to actually contemplate where her life was going and where it _needed_ to go, Laura called out. "We're nearing the shield. You sure the jumper will pass through, Ma'am?"

Sam almost scoffed, not at the question, but rather the honorific. "Yes, it will. The shields are very similar to what Atlantis has but with the changes I've made to the Jumper's deflector shield, we shouldn't have any issues."

Nevas peered out through the window from his seat in the back and sighed. "Well, if we crash, will we know it?"

Ronon grunted once. "Does it matter?"

* * *

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	3. Chapter 3

Touching the Jumper down gingerly inside the walls of the large complex where the mass of lifesigns was detected outside of the shield area, the plan was quite simple. Wait for the EMP, move in, free the hostages, and if the shield wasn't down at that point, cover their retreat long enough for them to get beamed up to _Daedalus_. With only a skeleton crew anyway, they'd all fit, no problem.

John was glad that Reyna had been able to hold it together enough to gather a few nurses and both doctors from the Traveler Ships in orbit of Atlantis, in case they had casualties here. There was no telling what kind of shape the hostages were in and they had to be prepared for anything.

Looking up into the sky, John darkened the polarity on the screen ahead of him. To the side, Dan took a seat in the passenger side. Ironically, John wondered what Alicia would say to try and calm the situation. "Lots of cover positions here. Long as that nuke works we should be able to take the building right away."

Dan had rarely ever spoken to John. Marines and him didn't really get along too well in the thick of things, but John understood what Dan was doing, a final moment to have with him should the worst happen. It was common among soldiers to do this, a final farewell just in case.

John would have none of it. He was going to live through today and go back to his home to set things right. "I'll move the Jumper to the roof once we have confirmation of detonation. We'll cut our way in from above. They'll never expect it."

Turning to John, Dan smirked. "Guess you flyboys ain't all joysticks and computers."

Shrugging, John muttered back. "Guess you jarheads ain't all muscle and no brains."

They both gave each other sidelong looks, and instantly John felt that camaraderie of teamwork he'd been missing for so long.

* * *

Standing on this strange dome styled garden, Menalus looked out into the sky. The voice said to keep his eyes open and embrace the enveloping light that now shone down upon him. The needs of the Olim were not the only concern he had. Leaving Atlantis had been the right decision, but soon he would return, and now, with his eyes embracing the brilliant flash above him, the rest of him agreed that it was pointless, and that to reach perfection, one had to be as in touch with the universe as possible.

The voice wouldn't be quiet. It spoke of perfection. It spoke of the kinds of things Menalus had always been taught in Temple. The wisdom of the Progenitors, the Alterra themselves… Was this their voice?

This long abandoned outpost had been preserved, a monument to the long lasting technology and intellect of such divine beings. Much study was done on these ruins, and many technologies were reverse engineered from them, gifts from the Progenitors.

Like Atlantis. Atlantis was a gift, Menalus understood now. The voice was telling him all he wanted to hear. He was alone, the others were senile and unwilling to do what had to be done. Even Denarius, who now fled through the Astria Porta, was foolish. The Monkeys were a threat, a credible one at that. Korpius and Aquilina had both spoken of a terrible weapon that had crushed the life out of their brothers and sisters in arms, a full thirty of the best warriors the Olim could assemble… lost.

Korpius was on the way as well. His screams as he crawled through the Porta had been the start, and there was much to teach him, much for this epiphany to share.

But that would come with time, and now Menalus realized that before he could retake Atlantis, this time not concerning himself with such ridiculous notions as reverse engineering the Ancestral technology, he had to bring the might of the Olim to a single point. Much as Atlantis now did with its almost demonic ship hovering just out of reach.

But at least these 'Potentia' would have some use. The technology of the Ancestors was the longest lasting, a testament to their ingenuity, a true sign that the Alterra were holy, gods among men.

* * *

The Jumper landed without much clatter, and Sam and the rest of the team quickly snuck out. The EMP had blown and _Daedalus_ was still waiting above, ready to deliver fire support if needed. But John would be the one to receive it. Sam now led her team towards what looked like an airlock on this strange half buried Ancient outpost. It was strange. Sam didn't even know the alloys the Ancients used could rust. How old _was_ this place?

Looking around, Sam saw thick brushes of dry plants, the planet itself was arid and not like the usual planets the Ancients would seed with Stargates. A few trees here and there, but Sam smacked her lips together as the wind dried them. A vibe of red almost rust color coated the whole area, Sam oddly wondered if perhaps the facility had something to do with that.

Waving Laura forward, Sam extended the stock of her Particle Rifle as Laura took the lead. As John had amusingly called it a Traveler Atlantean Particle Rifle, or TAPpeR, Sam had shuddered at the name, but at least it made sense.

Laura quickly examined the airlock, attached a pair of C4 charges and nodded to the others. It was odd that there was no one around. Almost as if they were either all inside or they'd abandoned the area. The team took cover behind the Jumper and Laura set off the explosives.

The loud _kaboom_ and shockwave passed by harmlessly. A cloud of smoke remained, but it was clear the airlock had been torn asunder. Before Sam could move ahead, Ronon took point. "Come on."

Seeing that this was going to be a fight in more ways than one, Sam laid down the law even harder. She pulled out the modified scanner she'd brought from Atlantis and almost hissed. "Fall in, Ronon, we're here to get our ZPMs back. The less combat we see the better."

Nevas and Laura quickly took Sam's position and covered her as she moved forward. Ronon silently watched, and then followed suit.

Easy for now, but Sam knew the instant they saw any action Ronon was going to go berserk. She'd seen that look in soldiers' eyes before, a level of disassociation that turned a soldier into a weapon… and a loose one at that. She had to get him under control and _now._ "Ronon, take the rear. They'll likely try and ambush us in these corridors. Fire on sight, but don't stray." Again Ronon gave her an examining look. Sam knew she looked soldierly. Her long hair had been tied back into a ponytail that she'd shoved into her cap, and her particle rifle was set to overcharge. The bandoleer of grenades only added to the effect, and soon enough, Ronon nodded.

Laura and Nevas both watched their flanks as they moved into the compound. It quickly became apparent that if this was an Ancient outpost, 'Ancient' was the right qualifier. The walls were dirty and rusted, a few cracks zigzagged along the wall. The air itself was full of dust and each member of the team tried their best not to choke on it.

What was worst was the smell. It had a metallic tangyness to it, but as well as the distinct flavor of tepid water. As they approached their first doorway, Sam was a little confused seeing a pressure door system like they'd find on a submarine. Before trying to open it, Sam examined the scanner intently. "This place is _huge_. I'm detecting at least 20 different levels, and a large amount of power coming from the center…" She furrowed her brow and muttered. "This place looks strange, almost like it wasn't built as a facility."

Nevas leaned over even as he watched the area around them in the narrow hallway and clicked his tongue. "Kinda looks like an upside down cone."

Laura began to examine the door, now pulling apart the levels holding it shut. "Upside down cone?"

Sam explained quickly as she put the scanner away. "The top of the facility is a lot bigger than the bottom. Almost like it was dropped into place." Looking around, Sam noticed that of the three corridors she could see, one was caved in with dirt and sediment, the lack of any sound only added to the mysterious and downright creepy vibe. "There're a lot of twists and turns, we'll have to follow the scanner."

Ronon grunted. "Easy to get lost."

Knowing it was the truth, Sam sighed as she realized this might take longer than she'd anticipated.

* * *

Something was very wrong. There was no one around on the ground, and even more, nobody noticed the dozen people jumping out the back of seemingly nowhere on top of the roof of this place.

John didn't like this one bit, and now feeling that perhaps the real fight was going to be in the shielded facility rather than rescuing the Travelers from this facility outside the shield, he turned to look at Dan. "You ready for a promotion?"

Dan looked up at John and shrugged. "Yer not coming?"

Shaking his head, John growled softly. "Something's not right. I'm trusting you, Drake; get our people out. _Daedalus_ is fire support."

A few moments to ponder, and Dan figured John was just being protective. In a way he detested that John would do such a thing, but in another sense, he could tell that John had seen a lot of action and his innate sense might be onto something. Dan's sure was. "Semper fi."

Raising his eyebrows, John nodded. "Uno Ab Alto."

Dan gave John a quick salute and hauled out the crate underneath the bench of the Jumper. He highly doubted that the Alcaeus armor could protect someone completely from twenty thousand dollars worth of Javelin Anti-Tank missile. He didn't look back as the Jumper began to ascend again, leaving him with a team of Travelers, Dusty, Rafaela and a _hell_ of a chip on his shoulder.

* * *

"There goes the last one. Scans indicate most of the planet is deserted but a ton of landing spots. I think we just caught the tail end of that evacuation."

Kevin shook his head. "Let 'em go. Start bringing us slowly into the atmosphere for fire support. Make sure shields are fully charged in case they have any turrets on the ground."

Jalen quickly relayed the orders and _Daedalus_ began to descend. The cloud cover had increased exponentially, thick wisps of steam from the Asgard Beam Cannon boiling the ocean. It wouldn't be much longer now for it to start raining on the planet.

They'd made it to the ionosphere when all of a sudden alarm bells began to ring. Marks turned from his position near the viewscreen and barked. "What is it?!"

'Ry' gasped at what he saw approaching _Daedalus_. _"Energy cannons!_ From the shielded facility!"

Turning back to the screen, Kevin watched as a dozen bolts of yellow energy flew up to greet them to the planet. "Evasive!"

Jalen hopped into the command seat and hit full thrust to the side. More energy cannon shots came from below and now it had become something unexpected. "Brace!"

The first wave of energy impacted _Daedalus_. With the ship caught in the gravity of the planet, pulling up and away was going to keep them an easy target. Jalen instead rolled the _Daedalus_ to the side, pushing the inertial dampeners to the limit. The Earth-built craft's shields absorbed the blow and dodged most of the incoming fire, but was now tumbling through the atmosphere as the heat from reentry burned a long red scar along the orbit of the planet.

Kevin hopped into his old post, and retook control of the ship. He _desperately_ wanted to fire back, but with those shields likely powered by their own ZPMs, any shot would merely drain them for use later. The incoming projectiles were a lot stronger than any Gauss Cannon he'd seen the Olim use thus far, and he worried about what else might be down there. "Give me military thrust! Evasive Manuvers!"

Ry called out from his station behind the Captain's Chair where Jalen scrambled to input the orders Marks himself wasn't handling. "Shields down to eighty four percent! Those cannons are _strong!"_

Kevin almost scoffed. _Of course_ they were strong, they were made by the _freakin' Ancients!_

* * *

Rafaela had ducked and covered her head. Granted, the nuclear explosion had already passed, but even so, the _sound_ those energy cannons made was terrifying. If she had to guess, they were on an equivalent level as the old Asgard Cannons she'd learned about at the SGC that had long kept the Goa'uld in check.

Lifting her to her feet, Dusty kept her moving as the squad of Travelers, now led by Dan, moved ahead. Sheppard was nowhere to be seen, but Dan didn't seem worried so neither was Rafaela. Sheppard must have been doing something important to have left Dan in charge of this hostage rescue team in the facility outside of the shielded area.

They needed to find the hostages and potentially their ZPMs, so banishing the shrieks she so dearly wanted to emit, Rafaela pulled out the scanner she'd brought along and kept low, Dusty still ferociously covering her as they now moved down the hallway. "Deeper! We need to move deeper into the building!"

Dan simply nodded and waved the squad forward as they used the Marine tactics he'd learned in Iraq and taught them. The building was a little more open than he'd been expecting, but that didn't matter.

Rafaela instead admired the architecture. The walls themselves were a dull metallic gray, with seams and channels cut in making intricate designs. The lighting was a long narrow beam running along the walls near the ceiling, giving ample lighting but no direct focus. Add a few plants, maybe a sofa or two and it'd look like a technological SGC. It wasn't like what Sam had told her and what she'd read of Olim construction. This seemed to have been built to stay on the ground.

Rafaela wasn't detecting a Stargate though, and with another look at the scanner, she called to Dan. "There's a staircase in the next section! It should take us…"

To her shock, Dan screamed out as he aimed towards the doorway. _"Incoming!"_

He dropped to one knee, and held down the trigger on his Particle rifle aiming towards the doorway. To Rafaela's shock, the entire squad did the same as the massive portal opened up, revealing several Olim with weapons waiting.

She'd missed it. The nature of combat was confusing and chaotic and she just couldn't keep up. Dusty shoved her to the side and used her own body as cover for her while the two squads traded fire. The Travelers quickly taking cover positions and unleashing on the exposed Olim.

The Olim weren't using their typical Gauss weaponry. Instead, these were less powerful but fast firing automatic weapons. They didn't make the bang of chemical projectile weapons though, so Rafaela still figured they were magnetic weapons.

Compared to the Particle Magnums and Rifles though, they were downright primitive. None of the Travelers took any hits as the wave of overcharged energy burned deep holes into the Olim defenders. None left alive.

Rafaela didn't have time to be sick at the smell of burnt flesh, as Dan flung a grenade forward and yelled. "Breach! Advance to cover! _Move, move, move!_"

Dusty again picked up Rafaela and tugged her forward. "Come on! Don't get separated!"

Doing as she was told, Rafaela ran into the giant staircase which was more along the lines of a great hall, a staircase winding down opposite walls with plenty of cover positions for both sides as they exchanged gunfire amidst stun grenade explosions. She could see several dead Olim, crushed in their armor against the ground from the earlier EMP event. Thankfully the Travelers here were all ones that had completed Dan's Marine training regimen, so they acted as a cohesive unit quickly tearing apart the disorganized Olim defenders with a mix of Traveler phalanx and Marine suppressive fire tactics.

If only her mother could see her now, hiding behind a metal pillar, her best friend leading the charge of a rescue mission, and her other best friend cursing in two languages as she fought to keep her safe. Yeah… Physics was a _great_ career to get into.

* * *

Sam held up her hand, quickly telling the others to remain still. She pulled out her scanner even as Ronon continued to worry her with his 'on edge' look. She took a quick scan and saw a cluster of lifesigns beyond the next hallway, probably waiting for them.

Using her hand as a fist, Sam motioned for the team to stop as she moved forward. She decided to show Ronon who was wearing the pants here. Nevas and Laura were already on her side and supporting her, but she did _not _want to have to tell John that Ronon died in some berserk charge on a well-defended line.

Slowly hugging the wall with her back, Sam flicked her particle magnum to the special mode she and Mila had designed as she tossed her rifle to Nevas. The magnums were great as a sidearm, but for a primary weapon it just didn't cut the mustard. So she'd added a few '_modifications'_ and now it was worthy to be used singlehandedly.

Nevas, Laura and Ronon all kept up despite her motion to remain still. Sam took a long deep breath, held it, and then leaned out into the hallway.

Sam had opened up valves inside the particle magnum so when it fired on stun, it used the equivalent energy of an overcharge bolt. That led to something akin to a Particle Shotgun with a trio of stun shots firing all at once in a slightly spread pattern

Double tapping the trigger, six stun bolts slammed into the waiting group of four Olim, not even time to scream as they convulsed and fell to the floor. Sam motioned to the group again and called out. "Come on! It's not much further…" she added under her breath. _"…I think."_

Just as they'd begun to move forward towards the next access door, the entire shielded facility began to rock as if an earthquake had hit. Laura cried out as she held the wall to support herself. "What the _hell_!?"

Sam could feel it as well as she stumbled about in surprise. Nevas must have experienced it countless times as a Traveler in Pegasus. The gravity was shifting and this entire facility was pushing itself up out of the ground.

To the side, Sam watched in rapt shock as the corridor itself almost a hundred feet down suddenly grow dark as it broke apart, the entire hallway shearing off from the massive forces involved. Nevas fell to the ground and cursed _"Wraith Shit! This place is taking off!"_

* * *

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	4. Chapter 4

Fury and rage boiled in John's veins. He'd gotten through this shield, but now the entire ground was shaking beneath the Jumper. Dirt and columns of rock shifted and fell aside, revealing a dull rusty red of metal. As it lifted into the air, distinct outcroppings bent and, with surprising force, sheared off as the craft pushed through god knew how many tons of dirt and rock. John had never seen anything like it, but he was sure some Greek poet would call it the birth of a god.

The facility was rising out of the ground tearing rock and metal as if it were burnt paper. John almost envisioned a hand shifting through sand but on a scale as big as Atlantis. The rocks kept falling away revealing the ship underneath, worn and dull from unknown time spent buried.. What ever the Olim had been hiding it was huge, and old. The jumpers sensors gave John a clear image finally, the facility was cone shaped with several 'spikes', each the width of a city block jutting out to the sides, six in total. He watched in awe as one of them ripped off the side of the ship, groaning and finally shearing off the mass. It was oddly beautiful.

That wasn't what he was flying inside the shield of this beast for though, and targeting all of the turrets he could, he decloaked and unleashed every drone weapon the Jumper had.

It was strange; he hadn't used a mental link in weeks if not months, but controlling the drones seemed to be easier. He could see each individual weapon as it soared out and cut into the facility below him, cleanly bisecting them and exploding.

There were more of those guns though, but at least now he had given _Daedalus_ a little breather. The Earth craft was circling the area around the building he'd left the team in and was firing its ventral railguns, obviously targeting any Olim resistance.

John spotted the other Jumper on the hull of this strange facility/ship, and set it down. The huge ship wasn't pitching much and the Jumper would hold still as long as the giant ship didn't twist to the side much. Following Sam and the others was risky, but he had the distinct feeling they'd need his help.

* * *

"Ahead! They're fifty feet ahead!"

Rafaela _really _wished some of the Travelers, or maybe even Dan, would learn to use these scanners properly. The gene interface the Travelers had designed was perfect for these situations, _why couldn't their security forces learn how to use it!?_

Dan was panting. He'd been leading this charge and had already emptied two energy caps for his rifle. He only had one left and the door ahead looked heavily armored. The Travelers instantly got what he was going to do and so did Dusty. "Come on, keep calm babe, we're almost done here."

How could Dusty stay calm at a time like this? Two of the Travelers were wounded and only their advanced medical kits were keeping them coherent, let alone conscious. She could only thank God that the Traveler Armor they used had been updated with ceramic plates from the Earth vests, along with some added metallic plates as well. The Olim guns broke through, but they were survivable injuries.

She _certainly_ didn't want to get shot herself, so she followed Dusty, still keeping her weapon drawn. Dusty covered her ears and motioned for the rest to do the same.

It was all happening so fast. How did the Travelers know exactly what Dan was going to do? How did he suddenly become the leader of their pack? Where was Sheppard?

A sudden deafening boom rushed out, along with a shockwave of dust and smell of burning metal and explosives. It seemed Dan had knocked on the door. _"Fucking cocksucker!"_ Apparently there was no one home. Daring to stick her head out, Rafaela saw that the door had held fast, though a large chunk of it had been deformed and blasted through. They didn't call them blast doors for nothing.

Before she could even comment on Dan's state of rapid soldierness, the rest of the Travelers raised their weapons and began to fire rapidly at the door. The torrent of Particle Energy began to melt the Trinium of the door itself, quickly glowing red hot from the dozens of hits. Rafaela even added her own fire to the charge despite not hearing an order to join in.

With the door already weakened, they finally blew a hole through into the prisoner room. Dan was the first one in, the Travelers close behind him. Rafaela was just about to come through when Dan cried out. "_Hold your ground! _Cover us!"

The way he said it was strange, almost desperate. Rafaela had never known Dan to be desperate so that _really_ worried her. This whole mission was one worry after the other. So unlike the dozens of small recon missions she'd gone with her team on, just exploring and finding little.

She'd volunteered because, with Radek so badly hurt, she was the only technician besides Sam who knew how to handle ZPMs. There weren't even any computer consoles in this building, so what the _hell_ was she doing here?

Dusty peeked into the room, and quickly pulled Rafaela away to take cover. "Come on. They're getting our people ready to move out."

As she pulled away though, a sudden crack of a sonic boom rung out through the room. Across them in the hallway, an Olim had his weapon leveled at them.

Rafaela winced as she felt pain along her face from a piece of shrapnel gliding past her, and ducked out of the way behind a stone pillar. She was expecting Dusty to do the same but instead, she just heard a strange wet guttural sound next to her.

Turning, Rafaela was horrified to see Dusty dropping almost in slow motion to one knee with a hole in her gun…

…and her stomach.

A strange expression was on her face as her breathing caught and eyes rolled back into her head, Dusty's body quivering from the shock as she keeled over to the side rolling to the floor.

Too catatonic to scream, Rafaela simply pulled Dusty behind cover. The Travelers had heard the shot as well and a few moments passed before they were able to down the lone Olim who'd evaded them.

Rafaela couldn't react. She couldn't even begin to think of what to do next. Dusty now lay in her lap, her head wrapped by Rafaela's arms. Dusty's stomach looked little more than flowing blood and torn armor and clothing. She tried to speak, but could only cough up wet pulpy gasps. Dusty's eyes slowly went into a thousand yard stare of shock.

Shell-shocked was something Rafaela had heard of, but until now she'd never thought she'd experience it.

Dan finally came out, leading the hostages. A few had armed themselves with any spare weapons the squad had, but when he saw Dusty on the floor, Rafaela holding her close and trembling in traumatic fear, the horror he'd seen inside seemed even less personal. The Olim were as bad as the insurgents in Iraq, and in some ways were worse given what was inside. He fought back his anger and clicked on his radio. "_Daedalus_, this is Captain Drake. We could _really_ use a beam out right about now."

* * *

Unwilling to fire on the steadily rising ship, mostly because he was afraid if he did, it would tear the entire thing apart with Sam and her team on it, Kevin piloted the _Daedalus_ now _under_ the massive craft. The underside looked like waterlogged wood after a few years of rotting. It held onto patches of dirt that fell and burned along the shielding, as well as dropping more pieces of the craft. The engines belched smoke and flame, despite the sensors clearly showing Ancient style of propulsion.

The clearly ancient vessel was _massive. _ Easily half the size of a Wraith hive, though with a much more 'Ancienty' design of geometrical shape. The giant pieces of it that looked broken and torn apart, the shards of it that broke off amidst the falling dirt and rocks, made it almost seem like some revived demon shaking off eons of sediment.

The way things were going, it'd only be a few more seconds until it rose high into the sky for the interference to become weak enough that they could beam the hostages up that Dan had found in the ground based facility. Kevin only hoped that Sam's team on the steadily rising shielded ship/facility had some luck as well.

At least this behemoth of a ship didn't have any weapons on the undercarriage, or if it did, they were too corroded and damaged to be any good. Shields were down to forty three percent and they wouldn't have been able to take much more without firing back. Kevin gave John a small salute for what had likely saved _Daedalus_ yet _another_ repair and refit.

* * *

"Holy _God_." Laura's soft incredulous words denoted her shock; she couldn't believe her eyes. When she'd heard Sam say they were approaching a large open area, she'd figured something like the Gate Room in Atlantis; this place _was_ big enough.

Instead, the small hallway led into a _vast_ storage area; something akin to Costco or Wal-Mart. Even more, there were Stargates, _dozens_ of them all lined up and held in neat little rows around a center raised dais, dominating the view. The room was oval shaped, with the catwalk serving as a transportation system to several different hallways that led out of this warehouse. A soft lighting system gave a creepy vibe as visibility was low.

Several people crowded a platform, a pair of them moving off in the opposite direction.

With the scanner in her hand, Sam nodded to the others. "The ZPMs are there. They must have it hooked up somehow… This must be a Seeder Ship that came out this way millions of years ago."

Ronon grunted and motioned to the sides of the room where the catwalk ringed the area and provided a clear field of fire. "Good positions there, I'll cover you."

Despite the offer, Sam could tell that Ronon was holding something in. She hadn't spoken to him in awhile and had lost touch with him. She'd lost touch with a lot of people because of her position. Really the only people she ever talked to were John, Daniel, Larrin and Marks. Suddenly she felt very alone.

Despite that, Nevas pointed to the row of Stargates closest. "If we can knock one down, it might shove the rest down too. Hell of distraction."

Sam agreed, and she looked to Ronon. "You're with me, Ronon. Laura?" She looked to the nervous looking Captain. "Tip over the first one."

Shrugging, and still a little shocked, Laura nodded as she pulled out her bandolier of C4 charges. "Kinda reminds me of _The Mummy._"

With Laura moving off stealthily, Sam now looked to Nevas. "Cover us from up on the catwalk, we're moving in up close and personal."

Nevas looked hesitant. Evidently he wanted some reciprocity as well. But he nodded and flicked his Particle Rifle to overcharge. "I gotcha." Nevas then yanked back the stock so he could get a better aim on the now rifle sized weapon.

Ronon growled and looked at Sam with an almost harsh glare. "Point?"

Sam couldn't tell if he was asking if he wanted point, or if she was taking it. Finally aggravated, she kept her voice strong and confident. "Hate me later, kill them now." She then turned and moved forward to the opposite side of the room where Laura was, not giving Ronon a chance to rebut her.

Ronon stood for a moment then flicked his gun to overcharge from safety. "Finally."

* * *

John had opted to come armed only with a particle magnum and his P229 sidearm. With only around forty Particle Rifles built so far, he preferred to leave it to Dan and his squad who would likely see action. Typically he'd carry a berretta or maybe even a Glock, but evidently Sam had ordered P229s in .357SIG before they left Pegasus for the extra armor penetrating power.

At least if he ran into any armored Olim, the gun would scare the crap out of them with the resounding ping. 7,62 was a decent round, but a .357 would likely deafen them from the kinetic energy.

With his Particle Magnum on overcharge though, John was hoping his stealthy movements through these dark almost submarine like hallways would go unnoticed, and if he _was_ noticed, the overcharge would take them out quickly.

These hallways were so dark and dreary John wondered when was the last time they'd been cleaned. The rusty red almost felt like the walls themselves were bleeding. John wasn't in any mood to remember all those old horror movies and pushed it out of his mind.

As he approached what appeared to be a large warehouse section on the lifesigns detector he carried, a scream came down the hallway to his left. Raising his weapon, John knew that nobody screamed like that unless something bad was going down. The scream sounded feminine, obviously infuriated and familiar.

Still careful, using one hand to use the scanner and the other to aim his magnum, John inched forward to where he'd heard the scream, now hearing sounds of a struggle. Voices even.

One was male and condescending, and the female was angry and shrill. He couldn't make out the words, just the intonation.

A chill ran down his spine, coming from that little intuition he'd always had, his _"Spidey sense"_. Things usually went bad when he ignored it so he stopped for a moment to think. He let the stale air pass him by. The dull red of the metal around him seemed to waft off particles of red rust. The voices became clearer, but it was still indecipherable. The one thing that was clear was that the female was scared and the male was laughing.

Feeling a righteous sense of rage in his veins, John tracked the sound down the hallway and to the right. A little more and a doorway appeared on the left. He was guessing he wasn't that far from the large storage area, but something told him this was more important right now.

The voices grew. Now nothing but sounds of struggle and a man chuckling to himself. John had just inched next to the door when he finally made out the male voice; husky and obviously amused. "_Cheer up, primate. Your silence might get a real person out of this."_

Unsure of what that meant, but quite suspicious, John took a last deep breath and jumped into the room in a low crouch. His footsteps were quiet and he saw a man standing over a table-like piece of furniture with a woman lying on it. As John aimed and fired, the woman screeched a curse. The red bolt of overcharged plasma from the Magnum slammed into the man's chest, sending him toppling backwards.

There was another man as well, and John saw him reaching towards what looked like a desk. Instinctively, John twirled his body and fired off another pair of shots. These smacked into the man as a headshot and shoulder shot respectively, snapping his neck from the sudden impact and sending him toppling out of view..

John looked around, his adrenaline threatening to break his control. It was something akin to an infirmary with a few rotten old beds and some computer consoles. He turned to the woman and was horrified to see …

_"Larrin!"_

She was wearing some kind of fitted white scrubs that were a little better than what he'd expect from Carson, but her face was bruised from what appeared to be a backhand or slap. Not wasting anytime thinking about what had happened to her despite the searing rage that caught in his throat, John quickly scurried over and used his knife to slash open the leather bonds holding her to the table like some kind of specimen. The table rocked as he worked and John could see that it swiveled much like a seesaw, putting her into a standing or laying down position.

Larrin remained silent, but she trembled and looked like rage incarnate. As soon as John freed her hands, she dug into his holster and yanked out his spare sidearm.

Still grimacing and shaking, Larrin unloaded the entire clip into the prone body of the man who'd been standing over her. Bullet after bullet punched into the body, tearing flesh from sinew and bone, Larrin unleashing a primal scream as she fired.

With the clip empty, Larrin still pulled the trigger repeatedly. John didn't blame her rage and finished freeing her, finally pulling the gun away from her gently, despite the fury making his own body shake. His adrenaline peaking, John thought about what he'd heard. He knew Menalus and his men thought little of them; the "_monkey_" and "_primate_" comments were a lot more than the innocence of the word let on. He didn't want to think about it, but right now that didn't matter. They needed to find Sam's team and get the hell out of here.

Turning to John, Larrin still didn't say anything. She simply pulled together the scraps of clothing she had and gave John what amounted to a pleading, yet infuriated look.

Without a word, John reloaded the P229 without taking his vision off her and handed it to Larrin butt first. It shook as his muscles quivered in anger, Larrin still shuddering as well. John then took his leather uniform jacket off and wrapped it around her, Larrin quickly putting it on properly and fastening the buttons. It was distracting to see the curvature of her cleavage from the alienesque shirt, and not in a good way. John found an odd comfort that they hadn't taken her shoes away.

John pulled Larrin along, keeping one arm around her, the other holding his gun up ready to fire. He'd come to this place expecting a fight. He never thought he'd run into something so…_sickening_. If Aleron survived, he'd have _a lot_ to explain about Olim 'interrogation' techniques because John knew that if he found Menalus right now, he'd tear him apart with his bare hands.

* * *

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	5. Chapter 5

**A/N:** _For added effect to this final chapter, listen to "Requiem for a Dream" while reading._

* * *

"Leave them alive. We will have use for them later."

Adelan turned to the screen where the few weapons the ancestral ship had, continued to try and hit the Atlantean Warship. "They refuse to fire on us. We should destroy them."

Growling, and clearly emoting his displeasure with the thought, Menalus replied. "_No_. That ship would annihilate our race if we enrage it. Continue firing but prepare to leave. The Porta is open to Telarus and our people have fled."

It was difficult to understand or even decipher Menalus's thoughts. Listening to him was strange, but feeling his thoughts was even stranger. "What of the Atlantean Power Modules?

A spike of anger, almost as if Menalus was regretful. "Leave them. We've taken all we need from this craft. Korpius has already left for Telarus with copies of what we need. You will take the original."

Adelan was _still _very confused, and seeing Menalus standing beside him wearing his Achilus armor made him curious as to what was going on. "Forgive me, but is this not one of the progenitor's creations? To abandon it to these primates seems… _criminal."_

Menalus turned his head to Adelan. It was eerie to see the older man encased completely inside his armor and hear him through the suit's speakers instead of his thoughts. "Tell me, Adelan… have you been to the city of the Ancestors? Have you seen the… _perfection?_"

Seeing Menalus's point, Adelan simply nodded. "I understand. I'll go to the main control room and recover the data."

Turning towards the activated Astria Porta, Adelan sighed as Menalus simply turned and walked away. He hoped the older leader knew what he was doing, but for some reason Adelan was worried.

Looking to the few men remaining, Adelan decided to bring the prisoner. She'd proven quite resilient to interrogation and Menalus had said his own men would break her. It was strange. It had been such a long time since Adelan had fought against other sentients. Even these primates seemed more than capable of civility, but in the end, they really didn't matter in the grand scheme of things.

Adelan never really believed in Progenesis, but at the same time, he wasn't against it. The Alterra were superior and deserved such praise. If they'd asked of him, he would give it unquestioningly. These primates offended the natural order of evolution by holding onto Atlantis too zealously. At least that one monkey they'd brought back might end up assisting her own people to evolve. Adelan thought it brutal, but perhaps a necessary action to get her to reveal her knowledge.

Waving his men into the Porta, Adelan grabbed his satchel and prepared to go and retrieve the data storage devices of the Ancestors. The small room with the main Porta was only a fraction of the size of the main control room. So many Ancient Portas, the first developed by the Progenitors, the basis of his entire culture.

To merely throw it all away felt more than criminal. It was…_barbaric._

Something felt wrong and Adelan raised his small gauss weapon. It was mostly a personal protection weapon, one used against wild animals and the odd potential thief. He wished that he'd passed his tests for Alcaeus Armor wielding. Joining the legion of Proteans was a lifelong dream of his, but his own natural aptitude and family history of all things mechanical led him to join the support class.

Entering the large warehouse, he kept his guard up. Something was very wrong and he could smell it in the air. He could feel it around him as the waves of energy cascaded on his body.

Just as he was about to turn and beat a retreat, he felt an intense pain along his backside, the distinct feel of burning and anguish.

The strength left his body, and he fell to his knees rolling around. He was still conscious though; the light body armor he wore had deflected enough of the hit to only wound him, however mortally. It was the female monkey and her mate. Ha! Adelan should have guessed. Taking one last breath, Adelan prayed that the Progenitors saw fit to pull him from this realm of existence and grant him every Olim's dying wish.

Larrin's boot finished Adalan off with a sharp hit to his jaw; just another way to vent.

* * *

With Ronon beside her, Sam clicked her radio giving Laura the signal. A deafening boom exploded out from opposite their position and the four Olim technicians quickly panicked at the sight of a domino effect of falling Stargates.

They'd only have a few seconds before the domino hit them, crushing them to death if they didn't run. So Sam leaped out and fired her weapon at full charge. Ronon did the same and moments later, the Stargate they were hiding behind took a hit from another and continued the resounding crashing.

Sam could swear she heard ringing in her ears, but in the chaos of the moment, and sudden bursts of particle fire from above them, there wasn't time to worry about hearing damage.

Ronon charged forward, almost brushing Sam aside. He sighted in on a fleeing Olim technician and quickly put a pair of shots into his back, the technician falling to his knees first, then falling over the side of the dais to the ground below as Ronon kicked him away. Another technician fell from an accurate burst of fire from up above where Nevas was watching over them.

Sam quickly cleared the area, and got to work on the ZPM housings. There was a lot of extra material here as well, and what looked like some kind of data core. Something to examine when and if they ever made it back to Atlantis.

* * *

"More biofoam. Keep her _still_ _dammit_! Those spikes did a _ton_ of damage."

Rafaela was on the floor of the infirmary on the _Daedalus_. It had only been a few minutes since the emergency beam-up and she hadn't said a word or even moved from her position sitting on the floor against the wall. People bustled past her without even giving a care. Several of the Travelers were hurt, some critically, but she could only think about Dusty.

"No! _Inside!_ Inside the wound!"

Rafaela's arms were still slick and dull red, her clothes stained from holding Dusty in her arms. Dan had stood there, obviously bothered but almost calmly calling for a beam-out. Rafaela had heard of disassociation but she couldn't bring herself to believe that Dan had felt nothing. She certainly had.

"Don't worry, just _stop the bleeding!"_

Biofoam. Rafaela had taken a look at it with Reyna and it was really quite ingenious. A biological cauterizing agent that spread like a foam and hardened to the consistency and elasticity of muscle tissue. Perfect for puncture wounds, cuts, and gunshot wounds.

"Don't scan, just stabilize!"

Reyna was likely going insane bouncing from one patient to the other, advising the other Traveler medics and doctors on emergency care. Rafaela had come out physically unscathed apart from the little scratch on her face, but judging by how her hands trembled around her knees as she sat with her knees to her face, her arms protectively around her body, she hadn't come out '_alright'_.

"Keep the pressure up until it stops bleeding. Use the cauterizer if you have to!"

Dan was nowhere around, likely he was trying to keep some semblance of order around them. Rafaela had come here… how? She didn't even remember why. Maybe someone saw all the blood on her, Dusty's blood, and thought she'd been hurt. The facial wound could have led someone to believe that.

Rafaela scientifically knew that a person had eight quarts of blood. What she didn't know was just how sticky it was, the way it made the skin inside her elbows glue together enough to make a sound as she peeled her arms apart, the smell reminding her of high school chemistry classes. How much of Dusty's blood was on her? A quart? Two? Rafaela had no clue how much blood a person could lose and survive. But given Dusty's pale skin that last time Rafaela saw her...

Gingerly touching her face, Rafaela wondered about infection or possible blood transfer. How could she _possibly_ seek medical aid for her little cut when the people around her were beaten to a pulp, stabbed, shot, or in Dusty's case, a hair away from death?

Even with two dozen people rushing around the infirmary, treating all the Travelers who'd been injured and desperately trying to save the critical ones, Rafaela felt intensely lonely.

* * *

"It's a Seeder Ship alright. Incredible; We only suspected these ships existed given the resources in Atlantis. I'm surprised it can still fly, but once I pull these ZPMs, the ship won't have any power left and fall to the ground."

Ronon grunted. "Let it fall."

Nevas had just joined them and winced as he caught his breath. "Uhh, can we get off first?"

Laura snorted, and then looked back the way they came. "Long ways away. Think we can make it?"

Sam shook her head and sighed. "No… the Jumper probably fell off when the ship took off. Our best escape is…" She motioned around to the Stargates lying around. ".. take your pick."

Ronon scoffed softly. "These rings don't look the same."

With all the dust thrown up, Sam couldn't say anything in rebuttal. "I'm not sure that matters. The seeder ship must have built these for this galaxy; it's here, isn't it? As long as we can get a stable connection to Atlantis, we radio in, they drop the shield and we go through."

Laura instantly saw the problem. "What about power? It's not like any of these gates have any."

Sam cocked her head. "I'm getting to that. These ZPMs…"She motioned to the console where the ZPMs were hooked up."… are hooked up using a similar system as we had in the SGC. I'm actually a little surprised it's so similar. I can hook them up to the gate and well…pray it works."

Nevas grimaced as he realized the issue with the plan. "So you're gonna pull the Potentia, and hope we can dial out before this whole ship hits the ground?"

Seeing that the cat was out of the bag, Sam looked at the ZPM hookup and over to the nearest gate. It really did look quite different. "More or less. I'm guessing we're pretty high up by now and seeing as there aren't any Olim around…" That surprised her, something was very off about this whole situation, but she couldn't worry about it now. "Just be ready to help me manually dial. We'll need every second we've got. Once the wormhole is active, Atlantis can hold it open, so we'll still be able to get these ZPMs back."

Ronon grunted. He'd heard of manually dialing the ring before, but with these crazy spinning gates he had _no_ clue how the hell they were going to do it. He just thanked the ancestors he'd taken up handstand pushups as a new form of exercise.

* * *

"What do you mean?"

Jalen shrugged and with a bewildered expression motioned to the screen. "Look! The damn thing's stopped! The shields are down and it's stalling out. Ten minutes and it's junk on the ground."

The battle had gone very different from what Kevin was expecting. If he didn't know better, M. Night Shyamalan was whispering to whoever was running this show. "What about the Jumpers?"

Jalen shook his head. "Fell off a little after the ship took off. Scrap metal's all that's left."

Kevin watched as the large ship finally stalled out above the mesosphere and hung there for a few moments. "Can we beam our teams out? I'm guessing they pulled the potentia."

Keying in the sensors, Jalen gave a short shrill grunt. "Nope. Nothing. Still too much interference; that thing's got enough refined Naquadah on it to block any beaming or heavy scanning. Must have been a mining ship or something."

Now reassured that the battle was over, Kevin sighed and decided to see what the cost had been. Sam and John would have to find their own way out, but something told him they'd known that from the start. "How many people did we beam up?"

Ry looked down at the console where the record remained of the signal transfer. "A hundred and forty-two. That's including our rescue team."

Almost thirty people still missing. Kevin clenched his fist and questioned just why this had all happened. Keying in the communication to the Infirmary, Kevin kept his voice strong and calm. "This is Marks, sitrep."

It took a few moments for a voice to reply, but Reyna's unmistakable voice came through with what sounded like stunned horror. "_Kevin… you better get down here…right now."_

The entire crew looked at their Captain, and saw in his face the dark curiosity. "On my way." Kevin quickly left the bridge, and soon approached the infirmary. Many people were moving out now, the crew taking care of them and assigning quarters for the duration. He spotted Drake coordinating. Kevin felt a little nostalgic for such professionalism while on the job. He'd often scoffed at the man's ways, but in crunch time he knew Drake could be counted on.

He also spotted other people he knew, but the one that drew his attention was Lieutenant Mehra…especially because she had a life support system attached to her. The price had been high, but the people saved were worth it in Kevin's opinion, not to mention the terror the Olim must have been feeling.

Was it selfish of Kevin to think like that? These people weren't soldiers. They were common Travelers, Crew of the _Sobek_ and the last remnants of the Pegasus Galaxy. Was it selfish to care about them? About her?

It wasn't until he made it to the edge of the infirmary and saw Reyna at the doorway, one hand covering her face, splotches of blood all over her medical smock. "Reyna. What…?"

She looked up at him, and he could see that she was silently crying. Reyna controlled a sniffle and then motioned inside. "The last bed…I-I pulled the curtains.. go… _just go now,_ _please…!"_ Reyna's voice cracked, and she again palmed her face as she rubbed her brow.

Kevin's breathing jumped. The realization finally hit him. '_No… no god, please no…'_

* * *

The ship was falling, the fact that gravity quickly seemed to shift was more than enough proof. John led a still silent Larrin into the giant warehouse-like room and spotted a great flash of light ahead. A Stargate. Well, SG-1 had done it often enough, why not?

* * *

Sick to his stomach, Kevin felt his hand shaking as he pulled the curtain apart. He already knew it going in, but seeing Katana lying on the bed, her skin much paler than usual… Even with the sheet covering her, Kevin could see the pair of bloody wounds on her shoulders as well as the one in her abdomen.

Something had punched a hole through all three parts of her. "Katana…?"

The woman stirred and whispered. "_Kev…?"_

_------------------_

Now hurried, John kept his weapon up and ready. Together they'd killed another three Olim who'd been patrolling, Larrin quickly showing her anger at her treatment. John simply tried to keep his rage in check. The Olim would wait for his wrath. Survival was what mattered now.

Rushing forward, John finally came into view of the Stargate. It was on a forty five degree angle and John could swear he saw something in the shape of Ronon jump in head first.

* * *

Approaching the side of the bed, Kevin took Katana's hand and squeezed it. She was cold…_very _cold. "Yeah… yeah, I'm here."

Katana could barely keep her eyes open, she looked up at Kevin and smiled though. "_I messed up."_

"No…_no…_" Kevin couldn't think of anything else to say, his eyes were soaked and his voice uneven.

Her voice barely audible, Katana explained. "_Tricked us… offered trade. Shoulda just left."_ She coughed once, obviously in great pain. _"I'm sorry. Don't wanna leave, but… but I was on borrowed time anyway."_

"No, no…you'll be okay…come on, you can pull through..." How many times had Kevin heard soldiers say that to one another? He cursed himself for falling into the same pattern. Not with her… she deserved so much more.

* * *

Just as John approached the stargate, a voice rang out from beside it in the dull red dust. "John!?" Turning, he saw Sam holding a ZPM in her hands. She looked astonished to see him. "What are you…?"

Grabbing a hold of her with his arm, he also wrapped one around Larrin and went with his gut. "Later!" Not getting an argument from either of them, John lifted them both up and hopped up and into the Stargate's puddle.

* * *

Katana just shook her head, the EKG monitor next to her slowly fading beat by beat. "_…Ever since we lost Aurora, I'm on borrowed time… I'm just glad I got to know you…" _Taking in a sharp breath, Katana spoke faster, yet softer at the same time. _"Don't kill them… don't be Wraith…"_

Kevin felt his teeth chattering. This couldn't be happening, Katana couldn't be dying right here in his arms. "Rey! _Reyna!"_

Her eyes watering, Katana whispered just loud enough for Kevin to hear. _"Mila… take care….of her…"_

Kevin was hardly repressing his tears, his mouth was locked in a grimace as he nodded and trembled. "_Yeah… yeah I…I'll…" _ Seeing the EKG at dangerously low levels, Kevin leaned forward and gave Katana as close to a hug as he could without hurting her, his fists white knuckled as he clenched the bedsheet.

* * *

A few moments passed, but soon the wormhole inside the Seeder Ship shut down, and in thirty seven seconds, the ship would pancake onto the ground and likely cause a nuclear winter from all the dust and particulate matter it would toss up into the sky. A fitting finale as the ship burned its way through the atmosphere of the soon dead planet.

* * *

_"Don't die… please… don't die please…please…."_

_"I love you." _Katana could barely whisper now, her voice fading.

Sniffling, and feeling Reyna come through along with another medic, Kevin whispered into Katana's ear. _"I love you too…"_

Kevin stayed like that, holding Katana in his arms as he winced hard, trembled ever so slightly, and finally heard the EKG flatline. The long monotonous tone was the only sound he could hear besides the thump thump of his heart.

* * *

**End Of Season Premiere.**

**Episode Notes: **

**_IceMenace_**_ admitted she cried a little when reading the last bit especially with Requiem playing in the background. _

_**Neela** didn't have Requiem, but admits a tear. (Only one!) _

_**Choo1701... **I think he went to the bakery for a snack :P_

_Before you all ask, the next episode will pick up where this one leaves off, but it's not strictly a part of this same "Invasion" arc. Episodes 22, 23, and 23.5 are a separate arc that stems from what happened in 19,20 and 21. Episode 24 and on is mostly standalone episodes with a few two parters.  
_

_The Seeder Ship is my own design, avid SG1 fans may recognize the similarity to the "Goa'uld" Space Station, this isn't a coincidence as i think the Goa'uld would have copied Ancient designs. _

_For those worried that this is going to turn into a weepy soap opera, Dark Frontier is meant to be a contrasting series with both highs and lows. Right now we're on the bottom edge of the lower bend, but by episode 24 we're back to SG1 style adventure. What happened here won't be forgotten like so many times in SG1 and SGA, but it won't be focused on to the point where every episode is doom and gloom._

_Case in point, I detested that we hardly got any focus on how losing Janet, Weir, and Carson affected the other characters. Unlike some of those however (i'm looking at you SGA.) i have a full plan for all 4 (potentially 5) seasons and this episode was planned right from the very start.  
_

**Random factoids:** _All three of my betas were confused over whether there was one facility or two. I've made it painfully obvious in frustrated retaliation. Yes it's petty, but __it's __damned funny :P_


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